The present invention relates to an application programming interface (API) that provides a uniform mechanism for gaining/controlling access to resources, managing multiple resources of the same type, and accessing the individual resource's management state and status. The invention is suitable for use in managing resources in a Digital Television (DTV) Receiver/Terminal.
A set-top terminal, also referred to as an Integrated Receiver-Decoder (IRD) or a subscriber terminal, is a device that receives and decodes television signals for presentation by a television. The signals can be delivered over a satellite, through a cable plant, or by means of terrestrial broadcast, for example. Various applications have been proposed, or are currently available, via modern set tops, including video on demand (VOD), audio on demand, pay-per-view, interactive shopping, electronic commerce, electronic program guides, Internet browsers, mail services (e.g., text e-mail, voice mail, audio mail, and/or video mail), telephony services, stock ticker, weather data, travel information, games, gambling, banking, shopping, voting, and others. Applications may also enable Internet connectivity and possibly Internet-based telephony. The set top functionality is enabled through specialized hardware and software.
The applications may be downloaded by terminals via a network, loaded locally (e.g., via a smart card), or installed at the time of manufacture, for example.
Moreover, with the increasing integration of computer networks such as the Internet, telephony networks, and broadband distribution networks, many opportunities arise for providing new types of applications.
However, in the new paradigm of broadcasting downloadable applications to television receivers, there is no deterministic way of predicting which applications will be running at what time, and possibly in parallel with other applications. Nonetheless, such applications must co-exist on the receiver and co-operate in such a manner that the end user has a positive experience while these applications compete for resources. For example, the applications should run without noticeable delays or interruptions.
Also, since there are only limited resources on the terminal, there is a need to monitor and control these resources, either locally or remotely from a head-end or an uplink. Such a monitoring and control mechanism should provide improved control of the receivers in the network, and should also have the capability to prevent or fix problems related to resources on the receiver.
It would be desirable to provide a mechanism for accessing and managing resources that addresses the above issues. Preferably, the mechanism should be implementable in an API.
The API should be compatible with Java™, ActiveX™ or an equivalent type of component based object-oriented technology.
The API should be compatible with Digital Audio Visual Council (DAVIC), American Television Standards Committee (ATSC) T3/S17 Digital TV Application Software Environment (DASE), Digital Video Broadcast (DVB))—Multi-Media Home Platform (MHP), and other related environments.
The system should be compatible with the ITU-T X.731 standard for state management.
The present invention provides a system having the above and other advantages.